6 Music chalks up 1m listeners

BBC station 6 Music has seen a colossal leap in audience of almost 50 per cent in three months – and has broken the million listener barrier.

The digital station – earmarked for the axe by Director-General Mark Thompson – added almost a third of a million to its audience in just a quarter of a year, according to figures from audience measurement body Rajar.

Jarvis Cocker presents a show on 6 Music, which has broken the million listener barrier

Figures such as David Bowie are among musicians who have backed the station, which features shows hosted by Jarvis Cocker , Steve Lamacq, Lauren Laverne , Guy Garvey and Cerys Matthews .

The massive audience spike comes just days after the station won a pair of titles at the Sony Awards. Jarvis made a passionate plea as he collected his Rising Star prize to keep the station going.

The proposed closure was announced in March and the resulting publicity – as politicians and musicians joined the protest – has clearly helped to raise awareness. The new figures, which cover January to March, show the station’s average weekly audience for the period has increased by 47.2 per cent.

Bob Shennan, Controller of 6 Music, hailed the station’s performance.

“I’m delighted for the whole 6 Music team on reaching the milestone figure of one million listeners per week. It’s fantastic that the station’s efforts have been rewarded in this way.”

Acts such as Coldplay have now joined the protest to keep the station alive.

In a statement released on Thursday, the group said 6 Music “nurtures and celebrates the music that hasn’t yet joined the mainstream”.

They added: “It provides an important platform for developing and left-of-centre artists, and its loss would be a significant blow.”